The city of Las Vegas was shaken to its core on October 1st. I will express my feelings later on in this post. I'm going to do my best to keep things in chronological order. So I will pick up where we left off from my last post.
Rock n Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon Training Week 6
September 4-10
Monday 9/4- 4.5 miles. This was 45 minutes on the treadmill at recovery effort. I did this run first thing in the morning. It was a fasted cardio effort.
Tuesday 9/5- 6.5 miles Track work!! 1.5 miles warm up, strides, 3 x 1 mile with 400-meter recovery 1-mile cd. This was another early morning fasted effort. The weather is so much cooler in the mornings. I'm a total lunchtime runner, but if I expect to run mile repeats at a quality effort, then I must get up early and run. I have finally reached a sweet point where my kids are sleeping in a little later, and I can knock out a run before they wake up. It was dark when I left the house, and I headed over to the high school track. There was a workout group there so luckily I didn't have to climb the fence. I finished my warm-up and strides, and my goal was to hit these at 7:30-7:40 per mile. Here's the data 7:37, 7:32, 7:29. My recovery was a 400-meter jog. After the workout, I ran a mile to cool down.
This workout gave me hope that just maybe I might be able to go sub 1:40 for the half marathon.
Wednesday 9/6- 4 miles recovery effort on the treadmill (fasted cardio)
Thursday 9/7- Rest- My new shoes arrived. My mother in law gave me a gift card for Nordstrom Rack and I was able to find a pair of Brooks Ravenas on clearance online. I rotate about 3-4 pairs of shoes at a time to help them last longer, and to meet the ever-changing needs of my sissy feet. On some days I want squishy soft support, some days I want to feel the road, and some days my weak calves/arches need more arch support.
I try to wear the shoes for at least 300 miles, and then they will become yard work, take the kids to the park shoes, and then they will be donated. I admire the runners that can run 500 miles in a single pair of running shoes.
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| Brooks Ravena 7 |
Friday 9/8- 5.1 miles at General Aerobic effort. I take my new shoes out for a test drive. I got up early and headed out the door, I live in the foothills of the Las Vegas Valley near Sunrise Mountain. My neighborhood is sort of hilly, and we have great views of the Las Vegas Skyline from our neighborhood. I am always fascinated with the view of the strip. A few years ago I actually wrote a post about this.
I sometimes take pictures during my runs to capture the beauty.
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| And I fail miserably at catching what my eyes see, and what my low budget cell phone is capable of taking. |
Saturday 9/9- Rest, I did go for a swim in the pool
Sunday 9/10 10 Miles- 3 miles warm up/GA effort, 6 miles steady state, 1 mile cool down.
I ran the last three miles of steady state a little faster than prescribed. But, I felt good the temps were cooler (compared to July), and I don't have to lug around my handheld water bottle. Here's the data.
More swimming with my kids in the afternoon
Total Miles for the week- 30.1 Miles
Week 7
Monday 9/11- Rest Day
Tuesday 9/12- 4.2 miles. 40 Minutes recovery first thing in the morning. I think I am feeling less creeped out about running in the dark. But, I did feel a little tired.
Wednesday 9/13- 5.4 miles- 45 minutes relaxed/General Aerobic effort, and a few strides. I think this might actually be the last "hot" day of the year. Today it was 96 degrees but, it was low humidity. This is the end of the Monsoon season and it is kinda early for it to start cooling down.
Thursday 9/14- 7.5 miles -Track work!!! 2 miles warm up, strides, 4 x 1200, cool down. I woke up early to head to the high school track. I'm working with a coach this training cycle. And I worry that he may be underestimating my ability. My coach is great because he errs on the side of caution, and wants to keep me healthy and injury free. But, I am stubborn and want to push past the prescribed paces so that I can feel confident about the upcoming half.
I was supposed to hit 7:30 pace for the intervals and I ended up hitting closer to 7:15-7:20 pace. Here's the Strava data (but, the data is skewed because I ran on the track)
I also tried my best to run a recovery effort that wasn't totally lax.
Friday 9/15- Rest, In other news, I'm expecting my exam results for the Business Environment and Concepts section of the CPA exam. I'm starting to prepare myself for the results in case I don't pass. :
Saturday 9/16- 4.3- 40 minutes at recovery effort and a few strides. And it's finally cool enough to wear my compression socks for recovery!
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| Compression socks are impossible to wear during the summer months. |
Sunday 9/17- 10 miles 94 minutes at a relaxed effort. This was a hilly run. During one of the uphill climbs in a residential neighborhood, I got chased by a stray dog. It was a little powder puff of a dog.
Week 8
Monday 9/18-3.4 miles- 35 minutes recovery effort at Cornerstone Park at lunchtime. This was supposed to be a rest day, but I'm starting to wig out because I am supposed to receive my exam results the following day.
Tuesday 9/19- 6.3 miles -I woke up and checked online, and I found out that I PASSED the Business Environment and Concepts portion of the CPA EXAM!!!!! I wanted to pinch myself because I had already prepared for the worst. I'm currently studying for the Audit and Attestation section of the exam. I am going to take the next exam on November 19th. (fingers crossed)
At lunchtime, I ran a general aerobic step-down run. I ran 6.3 miles. The weather was a pleasant 70 degrees. For reference last year the daytime high was 96 degrees.
Wednesday 9/20- 3.5 Miles at a recovery effort first thing in the morning. The mornings are starting to feel nice and chilly
FWIW- I have been doing fasted cardio for the past couple of weeks, and I feel that it has kickstarted my metabolism somewhat. I have also made a few tweaks to clean up my diet (less beer, less cheese, less junk). By adding fasted cardio, I have been able to lose about 4 lbs. I'm hoping to possibly lose a few more pounds before race day.
Thursday 9/21- 11 miles This was 3 miles warm up, 6 miles at steady state pace, and 2 miles cool down. It was a horrible windy morning. I ended up switching up my planned route because I felt like I was running in place when I was running into the wind. Here's the data.
Today was my anniversary. My husband and I have been married for 21 years. We don't really surprise each other presents anymore. But, that evening we were listing to music in our backyard. We both have eclectic tastes that overlap. We listen to a little bit of everything That night we were listening to the band Cake, and we wondered when they were going to be in concert in Las Vegas next. We used to go to concerts all of the time before we had children. It turns out that Cake was going to be in Las Vegas in two weeks (October 5th). We treated ourselves to great seats.
Friday 9/22-Rest! We headed to Southern California to visit family in Oxnard, CA. It's about a 5 hour drive from Vegas.
Saturday 9/23- 3.7 Miles at recovery effort. I felt dehydrated and tired during the run. But, man I love my old stomping grounds. Oxnard is at sea level and it is pancake flat.
Sunday 9/24- Rest we drove back to Las Vegas, so weird that the temps are cooler in Vegas than in California
Total Miles for the week 27.9
Week 9
Monday 9/25-5.5 Mile maintenance effort run. Here's the data.
I slept like crap that night. Maybe I had too much caffeine too late in the afternoon?
Tuesday 9/26- 5.5 Miles this was another maintenance effort run. I felt a little tired and groggy. It was a good thing I wasn't daydreaming. A car got really close to me going around a blind turn. It was full on in the shoulder of the road. I'm pretty sure I said, "what the f*ck?" When the car passed me.
Wednesday 9/27- Rest
Thursday 9/28-6.3 Miles-Speedwork 2 miles warm up, strides, 2 x 2000 (fasted cardio) effort. This was supposed to be run at half marathon effort, and I ran the first 2000 meter interval way too fast. I ran this workout at the park right around the corner from my house. They finished resurfacing the track. It used to be a rubber track, but now it is paved asphalt. Here's the data.
Friday 9/29-10.2 miles Friday Steady effort 10 Mile run. I was expecting to feel wiped out from yesterday's speed work. But, I slept well on Thursday. I covered 10.2 miles at 8:59 pace. It was great, because I only got stuck at one red light, and this run went by relatively fast.
Saturday 9/30- Rest I know that I mentioned above that I am cleaning up my diet. But, I felt like making treats for my family. Homemade pizza and Chicken Parmesan were on the menu.
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| I did roast some veggies to round out the meal. |
Sunday 10/1- 4.2 miles short recovery effort.
I went to bed that night thinking about the upcoming work week.
Total mileage for the week. 31.7 miles
Week 10
Monday 10/2- 6.6 miles-
My husband woke me up at 4:30 am to the horrifying news. Our city was ravaged by a gunman at the Mandalay Bay. Over 50 people are dead, and hundreds more are injured. Shock is what I am feeling most of the day. I didn't want to go to work, I began calling friends and family that may have been at the concert. I am grateful that I am able to locate them. I went to work hoping that I would see all of my coworkers. Las Vegas is a huge city, but it is also a small intertwined community. I have been to the Mandalay Bay resort dozens of times. The Rock n Roll Marathon actually begins right in front of the Mandalay Bay Resort, and I have stood on that concert field many times. (I am not trying to make this about me, I'm just trying to process the absolute horror that I felt).
My heart feels broken. I ran for one hour at lunchtime.
Tuesday 10/3- 4.4 Miles at recovery effort.
Wednesday 10/4 7 miles.- Speedwork- 2 miles GA effort, 4 miles at half marathon effort,1 mile cool down. This was angry running. I think I was in shock for the first two days. And this morning I woke up so mad. I can't stop asking "Why?!" How could someone be so inhumane to execute 58 people and maim and injure so many more? How could someone be so sadistic that they planned to assassinate hundreds of people?
I had hoped to channel some of my frustrations into my speedwork out. Instead, my pace was uneven, and I felt like I was on the verge of tears the whole way. Here's the data.
That day I went to a prayer vigil to mourn the victims.
Thursday-10/5 3.1 Miles at recovery effort. We had planned to go see Cake that night, but the concert ended up being postponed. We felt that it was the right decision, it would have been hard to go out and try to have a good time.
Friday 10/6 Rest
Saturday 10/7 11 Miles- 3 miles warm up, 6 miles tempo effort, 2 miles cool down. I'm not feeling as angry anymore (just sad), and today's workout was a bit more productive. I chose an area that is pretty flat, Here's the data
Sunday 10/8- Rest
Total mileage for the week 32.1
Week 11
Monday 10/9- 5.2 miles This was 45 mintes recovery effort and 6 x 20 second strides. I wore heels to work today, and when it was time to run at lunch, my calves were so knotted up for the first two miles. It seems now that I am getting *cough* cough* older I have to run for at least 20 minutes just to get all of the kinks out.
Tuesday 10/10-7 miles-Speedwork 2.5 miles warm up, strides, 4 x 800 meters. I drove out to an isolated area so that I wouldn't have to worry about traffic, and I wanted to find a flat stretch of road. I took the warm-up miles easy and then tried to push the pace for the 800's. Goal pace was 7:10 and I was able to meet the goal pace. Here is the data for the 800's 3:30, 3:32, 3:30, 3:35. This workout whooped my ass.
Wednesday 10/11 3.5 Miles at recovery pace
Thursday 10/12- Rest
Friday 10/13- Two rest days in a row. Sweet! I took my kids to the doctor for their annual wellness exam and we also got the flu shot.
Saturday- 10/14 8.1 miles 75 minutes of relaxed running... This was one of those pretty mornings that was nice and quiet, and I got to see the sun rise and reflect on the Las Vegas Strip.
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| I may be from California. But, I have lived in the Las Vegas valley for nearly 15 years and this is where I consider home. |
I also snuck in 4 x 1-minute pickups towards the end of this run.
Sunday 10/15-4 miles at recovery effort.
Weekly Mileage 27.8 Miles
So now we are just about caught up. The half marathon is less than a month away, and due to the events that happened on October 1st, the Competitor group has decided to move the start/staging area of the race away from the Mandalay Bay Resort. I think many runners were feeling apprehensive about starting there. And I feel that it is respectful to keep that area as a place of mourning.
I'm sorry for the long post. I just needed to share my thoughts with you all.
Thank you for reading.
